Different Substrates for the Production of Sesbania virgata Seedlings

The native seedlings production aims to attend plantings, mainly for environmental purposes, such as the recovery of degraded areas. To enhance the knowledge about species with potential for recovery of degraded areas, this study aimed to evaluate the use of different substrates on the growth of seedlings of Sesbania virgata (Cav.) Pers. The treatments were formulated using sewage sludge, coconut fiber, vermiculite and rice husk in natura, besides the commercial substrate. The seedlings were grown in plastic tubes with a capacity of 120 cm(3). The study consisted of fourteen treatments, with five replicates of five seedlings each, in a total of 25 plants per treatment. After 150 days of sowing, the following characteristics were evaluated in seedling: height, stem base diameter, the relation between height and the stem base diameter, shoot dry matter, root dry matter, total dry matter, the relation between the shoot dry matter and root dry matter and Dickson quality index. The treatments containing sewage sludge and vermiculite in its composition, particularly the treatment T6 (60% sewage sludge + 40% vermiculite), provided the best growth of morphological characteristics of seedlings of Sesbania virgata.